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Martin Tyler's stats and facts column: Opening-day omens

Can you answer Tyler's Teaser on Premier League losing World Cup finalists?

Last Updated: 20/08/14 11:02am

The new season is back and Martin Tyler returns with another brain teaser.

The new season is back and Martin Tyler returns with another brain teaser.

Martin Tyler's stats and facts column is back for a new season. Read on to find out which team has lost the most games in Premier League history and who has scored the most opening-day goals...

Tyler's Teaser

Every week, Martin will set you a question of his own to get your grey matter working. Click above for this week's Tyler's Teaser - which tests your knowledge of players to have lost in the World Cup Final.

Send your questions to Martin

Away days

Chelsea: ensured all 10 away teams scored this weekend

If Chelsea score, would this be the first time in PL history every away team has scored in the opening fixtures? @brownmc1986 via Twitter

MARTIN SAYS: That's a great question to start the series. As you will know by now, Chelsea DID score three times in the Monday Night Football game against Burnley (the only Premier League team to score three goals on opening weekend) and that means that 10 out of 10 away sides scored on the opening weekend. This is the first time in Premier League history that this has happened.

The closest we have come previously was back in 1993/94 when there were 22 teams in the league and 10 of the 11 away sides scored on the opening weekend. As you can see, the only away team to fail to score were Sheffield Wednesday, who didn’t find the net in a 2-0 defeat at Anfield.

Amazingly, the last time every away side in the top-flight scored on the opening weekend before this was at the start of the 1946/47 season (11 games in total).

The list below, courtesy of our friends at Opta, shows how many away sides scored in each previous Premier League season:

PL Season

MD 1 Games

Away Teams To Score

1992/1993

11

9

1993/1994

11

10

1994/1995

11

7

1995/1996

10

6

1996/1997

10

6

1997/1998

10

8

1998/1999

10

6

1999/2000

10

7

2000/2001

10

4

2001/2002

10

7

2002/2003

10

4

2003/2004

10

8

2004/2005

10

8

2005/2006

10

6

2006/2007

10

7

2007/2008

10

8

2008/2009

10

8

2009/2010

10

8

2010/2011

10

4

2011/2012

9

5

2012/2013

10

5

2013/2014

10

6

2014/2015

10

10

Home discomforts

Arsenal: one of only two teams to win at home

What are the stats about only two home teams winning on the opening day? Ben G (Aston Villa)

MARTIN SAYS: The only sides to win at home on Matchday One of this season were Liverpool against Southampton and Arsenal against Crystal Palace – and both of those were narrow victories.

This is the second lowest number of home wins for Matchday One in Premier League history. Back in 2011/12, there were nine games played on the opening weekend (Tottenham's game with Everton was called off due to the London riots) and the only home winner was Manchester City, who beat Swansea 4-0 on Monday Night Football.

Back in 2005/06, we also saw only two home wins out of 10 matches played. West Ham were the only home team to win on the opening day, beating Blackburn 3-1, while Arsenal won 2-0 at home to Newcastle on the first Super Sunday.

The record for home wins on the first weekend is the eight victories recorded in 2006/07. On that weekend the results were as follows, with only Sheffield United and Arsenal (in their first game at the Emirates) failing to record home wins.

The table below shows how many home wins recorded on the opening weekend of each Premier League season:

PL - Opening Day

Home Wins

1992/1993

4

1993/1994

3

1994/1995

3

1995/1996

5

1996/1997

3

1997/1998

4

1998/1999

3

1999/2000

3

2000/2001

7

2001/2002

5

2002/2003

5

2003/2004

6

2004/2005

3

2005/2006

2

2006/2007

8

2007/2008

4

2008/2009

7

2009/2010

4

2010/2011

5

2011/2012

1

2012/2013

6

2013/2014

4

2014/2015

2

Starting stars

Sheringham: has scored seven times on the opening weekend

Wayne Rooney has scored quite a few goals on the opening day for Man United. Which player is the best at scoring goals on the opening day of the season in the Premier League? Robert (Manchester United fan)

MARTIN SAYS: I can tell you that Wayne Rooney has now scored six times on the opening weekend of a Premier League season – and only three players have managed more than that.

One of those is Teddy Sheringham, who has scored seven goals on the opening matchday of a Premier League season – including, famously, the first ever goal scored on Sky Sports for Nottingham Forest against Liverpool.

However, two players have scored eight times on the opening weekend. Alan Shearer is one of those players – and the other is Frank Lampard, who wasn’t included in the Manchester City squad against Newcastle and so was unable to add to his tally.

Most opening-day goals in Premier League history (courtesy of Opta):

All-Time PL

Opening Day Goals

Lampard, Frank

8

Shearer, Alan

8

Sheringham, Teddy

7

Drogba, Didier

6

Rooney, Wayne

6

Saha, Louis

6

Bent, Darren

5

Bergkamp, Dennis

5

Campbell, Kevin

5

Ferdinand, Les

5

Fowler, Robbie

5

Owen, Michael

5

Champions starts

Manchester United: defeat not necessarily a bad title omen

What’s the number of times the EPL winner has lost the opening fixture @VickersHamish

MARTIN SAYS: More often than not, the eventual winner of the Premier League has won their opening game. In 13 of the previous 22 seasons, the title-winners have won their first match.

On only three occasions has a side lost on the opening day and gone on to win the title. On each of those occasions, the team concerned was Manchester United (in 2012, 1995 and 1992) – so maybe Louis van Gaal shouldn’t be too concerned about that opening loss to Swansea!

However, 11 of the last 14 champions have won on the opening day – which means the omens are good for Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City, Tottenham and Liverpool – and also Swansea, Hull and Aston Villa!

Results of eventual champions on the opening day of the season:

Season

Eventual champions

Opening result

2013/14

Man City

Won 4-0 v Newcastle

2012/13

Man Utd

Lost 1-0 v Everton

2011/12

Man City

Won 4-0 v Swansea

2010/11

Man Utd

Won 3-0 v Newcastle

2009/10

Chelsea

Won 2-1 v Hull

2008/09

Man Utd

Drew 1-1 v Newcastle

2007/08

Man Utd

Drew 0-0 v Reading

2006/07

Man Utd

Won 5-1 v Fulham

2005/06

Chelsea

Won 1-0 v Wigan

2004/05

Chelsea

Won 1-0 v Man Utd

2003/04

Arsenal

Won 2-1 v Everton

2002/03

Man Utd

Won 1-0 v West Brom

2001/02

Arsenal

Won 4-0 v Middlesbrough

2000/01

Man Utd

Won 2-0 v Newcastle

1999/00

Man Utd

Drew 1-1 v Everton

1998/99

Man Utd

Drew 2-2 v Leicester

1997/98

Arsenal

Drew 1-1 v Leeds

1996/97

Man Utd

Won 3-0 v Wimbledon

1995/96

Man Utd

Lost 3-1 v Aston Villa

1994/95

Blackburn

Drew 1-1 v Southampton

1993/94

Man Utd

Won 2-0 v Norwich

1992/93

Man Utd

Lost 2-1 v Sheffield United

The most losses

West Ham: defeat to Spurs saw them equal an unwanted landmark with their opponents

Which team has lost the most Premier League games since it began? ‏@Omar98RNS

MARTIN SAYS: Inevitably, the answer to this question is one of the Premier League’s ever-present sides. I can tell you that Everton have lost more Premier League games than any other club and at 297 losses are just three games shy of becoming the first team to lose 300 Premier League games.

West Ham are now in joint second place in this list, following their defeat to Tottenham at the weekend. They have now moved up to 293 Premier League defeats – level, ironically, with Spurs.

Everton and Tottenham have both played in all 23 seasons, while West Ham have played in 19 seasons. To rephrase the old cliche – you’ve got to be in it to lose it!

Thanks to the boffins at Opta, here are the sides with the most losses in Premier League history: